Dive Brief:

• Truly Hard Seltzer launched a new brand campaign that calls on drinkers to be true to their individuality, the company revealed via press release.
• Live Truly includes four spots, "Entrances," "Day Party," "Reflections" and "Late Night" directed by Malia James, who is best known for her music videos for musical artists Halsey and Rita Ora. The campaign was created with Goodby, Silverstein & Partners and will run on TV, digital and out-of-home.
• The Boston Beer Co. brand partnered with artists Max Loffler, Nikoo Bafti, Armando Veve and Merijn Hos to continue its Truly Originals artist collaboration. These artists created can designs for the new hard seltzer Truly Lemonade line, which will be featured in the new video ads and through limited-edition merchandise such as T-shirts and prints. All proceeds from the gear will benefit the Artist Relief Project to support artists impacted by COVID-19.

Dive Insight:

Truly Hard Seltzer ran a one-off billboard in Times Square last month to celebrate New York City Pride, but Live Truly is the company's first full campaign since the coronavirus pandemic spread around the globe earlier this year.

The new effort aims to celebrate creativity and individuality by playing up the unique flavors of its summer-inspired product line through the range of people who sip on these beverages in the ads and their carefree settings.

By tapping well-known director Malia James, Truly has created a series of energetic, upbeat spots that illustrate how Truly can be the life of the party or inspire fans to embrace their individuality. The hero spot, "Entrances," shows hip young people making their entrance at a lively apartment party to the track "Final Form" by Sampa the Great.

"This new creative and positioning is putting a stake in the ground to show what Truly stands for," Lesya Lysyj, CMO of Boston Beer Co., said in a statement. "We're inclusive, we're high energy, we're positive; we're inviting you into a party where you can be yourself."

Truly's new campaign follows other brands launching marketing efforts after pausing in earlier days of the pandemic. Recent campaigns from P&G's Tampax and Coca-Cola hint that marketers may be seeing a somewhat more stable environment that's conducive to returning to more "normal" campaigns and marketing operations.

Truly's lively creative suggests a return to upbeat messaging as lockdowns have eased in many regions and consumers begin to resume some form of normalcy, even if that means small backyard barbecues with social distancing and masks.